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Show Benjamin Franklin, one of America's Greatest Sons On January 17th occurs the 226th anniversary of a great American Am-erican who should not be forgotten forgot-ten amid the nation's tribute to George Washington this year; for this noted American was not only a glory to our history but without him Washington might not have bee nable to achieve our independence. indepen-dence. This great American was Benjamin Ben-jamin Franklin, who became, next to Georee Washington, the best known American of the 18th century. Wherever enlightened men gathered during Franklins 1 lifetime, they accounted him fore- I most in philosophy, politics, and I diplomacy, and to this day his B name is secure in history as that of a pioneer -in science. 1 Franklin was one of the most g versatile men of our history. His clear thinking and good common I sense won him fame everywhere. As for his winning personaltiy, it I proved a tremendous asset to the American cause. The final vie g torits of Washington on the battle I field would never have been pes- sible but for Franklin's skiU in the field of diplomacy and his ulti- mate winning of the French na- I tion to America's side. 9 Benjamin Franklin was born in 5 Boston, on January 17, 1706, the g United States George Washing- ton Bicentennial Commission re- minds us. His father wanted him f to learn the trade of candle-mak- jj ing, an occupation that he dis- liked so much that he threatened j to revolt. To forestaU his run- j ning away to sea, the boy Frank- I lin was apprenticed to his half- j brother, James, a printer; and j here Franklin's rapid self-educa- j tion got its start. In his brother's ; shop he met intelligent people, he ( eacurly read tin: best books, and he j soon tried his hand at writing for j his brother's newspaper, called the "first sensational sheet in America." Quarreling with his brother, Franklin set out for Philadelphia at the age of 17, to make his own way. There be soon caught the attention of Governor Keith at whose suggestion he went to London. Lon-don. There in spite of many hardships, he soon obtained employment em-ployment and his agreeable personality per-sonality brought him many influential influ-ential friends. One of them, a Quaker merchant named Denham, offered Franklin a job in a store that he planned to open in Philadelphia. Phila-delphia. Within a short time Denham Den-ham died and Franklin again was without a job, but his next step was important. With High Meredith he established estab-lished a printing shop in Philadelphia Phila-delphia and in ten years he had it the most important business of its kind in the country. Next he bought the Pennsylvania Gazette, which soon gained a circulation of 10,000 and became one of the outstanding out-standing papers of the time. In this paper he began those pithy maxims to be gathered under the title of "Poor Richard's Almanac " which lives today in lasting fame. Meanwhile Franklin's interest and activities had broadened in every direction. He founded the American Philosophical Society, organized the first fire company in Philadelphia, and became the city's postmaster and clerk of the Pennsylvania Assembly. His interest in-terest in science also developed, and he invented a stove and began be-gan those experiments in electric ity which have made his name a ho.iseholi word In the scientific world. Every schoolboy knows the story cf Franklin's suspicion that the lightnlngbolt was simply a largei specimen of the spark he drew from a leyden jar. He proved the likeness with his historic experiment experi-ment of the kite and the key during dur-ing a thunder-storm The Invention Inven-tion of the lightning-rod soon followed. Franklin's diplomatic feats make too long a list for a newspaper column, but it was he who first sought to bind the Colonies together to-gether in union. He performed many saving services for the Colonies Col-onies before the Revolution, and during that struggle his influence in France provided the factor that turned the Revolution to victory for America. Even at 81, Franklin's deeds foi his country were not yet ended, for in 1787 he performed the culminating cul-minating service of his long and great career with the fitting act of becoming a member of the convention con-vention that WTote the Constitution. Constitu-tion. Throughout his life he was a devoted admirer of George Washington Wash-ington and the friendship of these two men is one of the fairest popes in early American history OrThts deat:?," on April 17, 1790. Franklin willed his cane to Washington, Wash-ington, with the famous words: My fine crab-tree walking st.ck. with a gold head curiously wrought in the form of a cap of liberty, I give my friend and the friend of mankind, General Washington. Wash-ington. If it were a sceptre, he has merited it and would become It." |